Under-water diving equipment



March 18, 1969 o. F. PINTO 3,433,222

UNDER-WATER DIVING EQUIPMENT Filed April 1. 1966 //V 1 6/1062 fl/y/n a/aE 1 01/9 fax/A4142 0. F. PINTO March 18, 1969 UNDER-WATER DIVINGEQUIPMENT Sheet Filed April 1. 1966 rramc) United States Patent3,433,222 UNDER-WATER DIVING EQUIPMENT Olympio F. Pinto, Rio de Janeiro,Brazil, assignor, by

mesne assignments, to Bioengionics, Inc., Beverly Hills,

Califi, a corporation of California Filed Apr. 1, 1966, Ser. No. 539,477

US. Cl. 128-142.2 Int. Cl. A62b 7/04 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSUREThe present invention relate generally to under-water diving equipment,and it relates more particularly to a multi-purpose helmet combinationto be worn by underwater skin divers.

The principal objective of the present invention is to provide ahelmet-like combination for under-water skin divers which serves tomount all the essential components of the under-water diving equipment,and which may be worn comfortably, and easily put on and taken off.

The improved combination of the present invention, includes, forexample, a helmet composed, for example, of a hard plastic and includinginterior padding. The helmet also includes internal cavities. Varioustypes of electronic or accoustical communication equipment, andassociated batteries, may be mounted in the internal cavities.

The helmet combination of the invention, in the embodiment to bedescribed, also includes straps which may be buckled to a mouthpiece.This mouthpiece, for example, may be of the type described in copendingapplication Ser. No. 324,352, filed Nov. 28, 1963 and which issued Dec.20, 1966 as Patent 3,292,618. These straps, when coupled to themouthpiece serve not only to hold the mouthpiece in place, but themouthpiece, in turn, serves to hold the helmet itself in place.

The helmet combination to be described also includes ear cups on eachside. These ear cups permit the diver to hear by picking up acousticwaves in the water. Ear phones may be mounted in the ear cups, and thesemay be connected to the electronic communication equipment carried inthe interior cavities of the helmet.

The ear cups may also include self-equalizing pressure regulators. Thesepressure regulators respond to the external water pressure to controlthe air pressure in the ear cups and in the face mask and equalize theinternal air pressure with the external water pressure. This is achievedin a self-regulating, self-equalizing manner. By this means, thepressure in the ear cups and in the face mask is at all timesautomatically maintained in an equalized state with respect to theexternal water pressure.

Therefore, with the construction to be described, the pressure insidethe helmet and face mask is automatically regulated so that waterpressure is squalized and excessive pressure differentials are therebyavoided.

As the diver descends, for example, the pressure-regulators in the earcups permit pressurized air to flow into the helmet and face mask; assoon as water pressure is equalized, the regulators stop the flow ofpressurized air. Any excess pressure in the helmet or face mask isremoved by appropriate purge valves, for example.

The face mask can be constructed, if desired, to cover both the mouthand nose of the diver. When the face mask covers the divers nose, he canbreathe normally through his nose and mouth.

Quick disconnects are provided on the air hoses in the embodiment to bedescribed. This not only adds to the convenience in putting on orremoving the equipment, but it also provides a rapid means ofdisconnecting an air hose under water so as to provide air to anotherdiver who might be in trouble. To this end, two air hoses are providedin the illustrated embodiment, as will be described, so that one isavailable for a fellow diver without completely depriving the firstdiver of his air supply.

Also the second air hose can be used under water for other purposes,such as inflating life vest, pneumatic salvaging equipment, and so on.The quick disconnects, as will be described, are provided withanti-backflow valves so that there is no flow of Water into the helmetface mask, or mouthpiece, when an air hose is removed.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will becomeapparent from a consideration of the following description, when thedescription is considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a helmet combinationincorporating the concepts of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a front perspective view of the helmet combination;

FIGURE 3 is a view, partly in section, of a modified mouthpiececomponent of the helmet; and of a self-equalizing pressure regulatorwhich may be included in the mouthpiece, and also which may be includedin each of the ear cups;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary sectional view of an inlet boss for themouthpiece and a demand valve therein;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of an actuator for the demand valve;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary view of a modified hinge for a face maskcomponent of the helmet;

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary sectional view along the line 77 of FIGURE 1showing an exhaust valve for the mouthpiece; and

FIGURE 8 is a section along the line 88 of FIG- URE 7.

The helmet combination of the present invention as shown, for example,in FIGURES l and 2 includes a helmet 10. This helmet may be composed,for example, of a rigid plastic or metal, or other appropriate material.The helmet 10 includes the usual interior padding 12.

A transparent face mask 14 is mounted on the front of the helmet 10. Theface mask is hinged to the helmet by a pair of spring loaded hinges 16.As will be described in conjunction with FIGURE 5, a second embodimentof the hinges permits the face mask to be moved towards and away fromthe face of the diver, and to be adjustable to the left or right, or upand down. The face mask may be swung up to an open position. When it isturned down into the position shown in the drawings, the spring loadedhinges 16 hold it tight against the face of the diver. Additionalsprings may be used to maintain the face mask in position.

The face mask 14 is formed to include a curved glass window, so as toprovide a wide angle view for the diver, and yet maintain the interiorspace at a minimum, so as to reduce the interior volume requiringpurging. The distance of the face mask from the face of the diver iskept at a minimum so as to permit wide angle vision,

A purge valve 18 is mounted on the face mask, this valve operates inknown manner to pass fluid from the interior to the exterior, wheneverthe interior pressure exceeds the external water pressure.

The helmet has intrenal cavities formed in the interior padding, or inthe plastic wall of the helmet itself. Electronic or acousticalcommunication equipment, represented by the units 22 may be mounted inthe cavities 20. The sides of the helmet may be hinged, by hinges suchas the hinge 21, so that the sides may be turned out from the ears ofthe wearer to permit the helmet to be readily removed. Conversely, asingle hinge may be provided at the center of the helmet.

The helmet also includes a purge valve, such as the valve 24. This valvepermits air trapped in the helmet to escape, whenever the internal airpressure exceeds the external water pressure. This purge valve is ofparticular value in assisting in the rapid descent of the diver. It willbe appreciated that the helmet itself is not watertight, although theface mask is water-tight.

The helmet also includes a pair of water-tight ear cups, such as the earcup 26, these being disposed on each side of the helmet. Appropriatepurge valves may also be provided in the ear cups. The ear cups may beconstructed, as will be described, to include a self-equalizing pressureregulator. This pressure regulator responds to the external waterpressure to control the internal air pressure in the ear cups, and inthe face mask 12, so that the internal air pressure is equalized at alltimes with the external water pressure.

A quick disconnect coupler 30 may be mounted on the helmet 10, and ahose 32 from a usual air tank 34 is coupled to the coupler 30. Thecoupler itself may be of known construction, and it permits the hose 32to be coupled to the helmet 10, or uncoupled therefrom, merely by apushing or pulling operation. A usual valve is included in the couplerto prevent water from flowing into the helmet when the hose isuncoupled.

An internal hose 36 couples the coupler 30 to the ear cup 26, and asimilar hose couples the coupler to the opposite ear cup. An additionalhose 38 couples the ear cup 26 to a flexible hose 40 which, in turn, iscoupled to the interior of the face mask 14. The coupler .30 may beconstructed, for example, of anodized aluminum or plastic, so as toavoid saltwater contamination and oxidation, and it may include glass,or plastic, bearings.

An appropriate pressure regulator valve mechanism mounted within the earcup 26, as will be described, responds to the external water pressure,to control the flow of pressurized fluid from the tank 34 into the earcup 26 and into the interior of the face mask 14. The control is suchthat the internal air pressure is equalized with the external waterpressure at all times. A similar pressure regulator may be mounted inthe opposite ear cup.

It may be noted that the hose 32, which extends from the tank 34 to thequick disconnect 30, can also serve as a spare hose. That is, the hose32 can quickly be disconnected from the coupler 30 and plugged intoanother divers mouthpiece, to supply air to the other diver, should anemergency arise.

It may also be noted that if the interior of the face mask 14 becomesflooded, the diver can press the pressure regulator in either one of theear cups to cause a supply of air to flow into the helmet, so that thewater in the face mask is purged out the valve 18. The diver thenreleases the pressure regulator, and the air pressure within the earcups and within the face mask will again be automatically controlled,until it is again equalized with the external water pressure.

The hose 38 from the ear cups is preferably positioned below the earcups, rather than in the position shown in FIGURE 1, so that if there iswater in either ear cup, it will be expelled through the correspondinghose into the interior of the face mask, and out the purge valve 18. Thepurge valve 18 also serves as an anti-fogging device.

If so desired, an electric light 50 may be mounted on top of the helmet.Also, additional colored lights may be provided under the control of thediver, so as to provide Warning signals to other divers. For example,one of the lights is energized automatically when the pressure in thetank decreases below a particular threshold. Other colored lights may beused to designate other pressure thresholds.

A plurality of straps, such as the strap 54, are mounted in the helmet10, and these straps are buckled to a mouthpiece 56 by means, forexample, of the buckles 58. A quick release for the mouthpiece, asindicated 60 may also be provided.

As noted above, the mouthpiece '56 may extend over the nose of thediver, as shown in FIGURES 1 and 2 so as to permit nose and mouthbreathing. Air is introduced into the mouthpiece through an inlet 62 byway of a hose 64. The hose 64 also extends to the air tank 34, togetherwith the hose 32. The hose 64 may be coupled to the inlet by aquick-disconnect coupler, like the coupler 30 described above. The hoses32 and 64 may be coupled to the air tank 34, likewise, byquick-disconnect couplers, if so desired.

As mentioned above, the straps 54 not only serve to hold the mouthpiecein place around the mouth of the diver, but also enable the mouthpieceto hold the helmet in place on his head.

The modified mouthpiece 56a, which may be similar to that described inthe aforesaid copending application, is shown in detail in FIGURE 3. Themouthpiece 56a terminates under the nose of the diver. As illustrated inFIGURE 3, the inlet hose 64 is clamped to the tubular boss which formsthe inlet 62. The mouthpiece 56 includes a pressure regulator as anintegral unit. The regulator is a self-equalizing demand valve type.

As shown in FIGURE 3, the regulator 150 includes an outer wall 152, andan internal flexible diaphragm 156. The diaphragm defines a waterchamber 158 with the apertured wall 152. The diaphragm 156 iswater-tight, and it separates the water chamber 158 from the internalchamber 159 of the mouthpiece. A spring-loaded manually operable pushbutton 151 is included to permit a flow of purging air into themouthpiece when desired.

The inlet 62 communicates with the interior of the chamber 159. Aspring-loaded tilt valve assembly 162 is positioned in the inlet 62, andthis assembly includes an elongated bracket 164 (FIGURE 5), or itsmechanical equivalent, which serves as an actuator for the valve 162.The bracket 164 extends into engagement with the inner surface of thediaphragm 156.

Then, as the diver inhales, the diaphragm 156 moves inwardly. Thiscauses the bracket 164 to pivot at its lefthand end and pull the valvestem 165 to unseat the valve head 161 in the demand valve assembly 162,so as to permit pressurized air to enter the chamber 159. Then, when thediver exhales, the diaphragm 156 moves outwardly, and away from theactuator 164, so that the valve 162 closes under the pressure of spring167. In this manner, the diver is enabled to breathe comfortably intothe mouthpiece.

The particular type of tilt valve assembly shown in FIGURES 3 and 4 is adown stream variety which will not jam and will continue to operate evenin the presence of excessively high inlet air pressures.

It will be appreciated that the pressure on either side of the diaphragm156 is substantially equilized, by the air in the chamber 159 and by thewater in the water charnber 150. It will also be appreciated that thediaphragm 156 conveniently serves as a transducer, so as to permitcommunication, even without a microphone and electronic equipment, to becarried out at short distances.

Any speech by the diver sets up a corresponding vibration in thediaphragm 156 which, in turn, sets up acoustical vibrations in thewater, these latter vibrations being communicated to adjacent divers.Because of the equalized pressure on both sides of the diaphragm 156, itis able to vibrate freely, as the diver speaks.

As mentioned above, a pressure regulator similar to the regulator 150may be included in each of the ear cups 26. The regulators in the earcups respond to any differential in water pressure to open corespondingair tilt valves and thereby control the flow of air into the ear cupsand into the interior of the face mask. Also, the diaphragms in theregulators of the ear cups are free to vibrate, so that any acousticalvibrations in the surrounding water are communicated as sound waves tothe ears of the diver, so that the ear phones in the ear cups are notessential for communication with adjacent divers.

The air exhaust from the mouthpiece 56 is normally through an exhaustport 170 at the bottom of the mouthpiece. This exhaust could be directedinside the helmet to warm the head of the diver, and it would thenbubble up from the purge valve 24. The position of the purge valvepermits the escaping air bubbles to be away from the face mask 14, so asnot to obstruct the view of the diver. Also, they could be relativelynoiseless, so as not to interfere with acoustical communication. Asshown in FIGURES 7 and 8, the exhaust port 170 may be in the form of amolded slit. This slit passes exhaust air out of the mouthpiece andfunctions as a valve so as to prevent water from being drawn into themouthpiece when the diver inhales.

A boss 57 may be formed at one side of the mouthpiece, as shown inFIGURE 3. A housing 59 is supported in the boss and extends into themouthpiece. A push button 61 is mounted at one end of the housing 59. Anaerosol cartridge 63 is mounted in the housing. The cartridge containscompressed air and is replaceable. In an emergency, the diver can pushthe button 61 and provide himself with suflicient air to reach thesurface.

The hinges 16, shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, may be replaced by hinges suchas the hinge 200 shown in FIG- U'RE 6. The latter hinge is advantageousin that it permits the face mask to be adjusted to any desired position.

The hinge 200 is provided with two links 202 and 204 which areintercoupled by means of a knee joint 206. The link 204 is coupled to apin on the helment 10 by means of a ball and socket joint 210. The link206 is coupled to a pin on the face mask 14 by means of a ball andsocket joint 212. The joints 206, 210 and 212 are all sufficiently tightso as to cause the face mask to be retained in any position in which itmay be set.

The invention provides, therefore, an improved helmet combination forunder-water diving equipment. The combination, as is evident from theforegoing description, is easy to put on or take off, and is extremelycomfortable to wear. Moreover, the helmet assembly may include all thecomponents required by the diver to exist under water and to communicatewith others.

While a particular embodiment of the invention has been described,modifications may be made. It is intended in the claims to cover allmodifications which come within the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. Under-water diving equipment including: a helmet composed of rigidmaterial and having interior padding; a transparent face mask mounted onsaid helmet in position to extend across the eyes of the wearer; amouthpiece removably mounted on said helmet in position to enclose themouth of the wearer; a pair of ear cups mounted on each side of saidhelmet; a source of breathable pressurized fluid; first conduit meanscoupled to said source for introducing pressurized fluid therefrom intothe interior of said ear cups and into the interior of said face maskfor pressure equalizing purposes; first self-equalizing pressureregulator means coupled into said first conduit means; first purge valvemeans mounted on said face mask to pass fluid from the interior of saidface mask to the exterior thereof whenever the interior pressure exceedsthe external water pressure; second conduit means coupled to said sourcefor introducing the breathable pressurized fluid into said mouthpiece;second self-equalizing pressure regulator means coupled in said secondconduit means; and an exhaust valve means mounted on said mouthpiece todischarge fluid from the interior thereof.

2. The assembly defined in claim 1, in which said interior paddingdefines at least one interior cavity, and which includes communicationequipment mounted in said interior cavity.

3. The assembly defined in claim 1, and which includes purge valve meansmounted on said helmet for passing fluid from the interior of saidhelmet to the exterior thereof whenever the interior pressure of saidhelmet exceeds the external water pressure.

4. The assembly defined in claim 1, and which includes a pair of hingescoupling said face mask to said helmet, each of said hinges including apair of links, a kneecoupling means intercoupling said links, and a pairof ball and socket coupling means respectively coupling one of saidlinks to said helmet and the other of said links to said face mask.

5. The assembly defined in claim 1, and which includes a compressed aircartridge mounted in said mouthpiece in position to permit compressedair from said cartridge to be discharged into said mouthpiece.

6. The assembly defined in claim 1, in which said helmet includes atleast one hinged section to permit easy removal thereof from the head ofthe wearer.

7. The assembly defined in claim 1, in which said exhaust valve meansmounted on said mouthpiece has a slit-like configuration.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,174,780 3/1916 Tychon 128- 14261,264,706 4/ 1918 Stallworth 128-1427 X 1,477,627 12/1923 Campbell128-41425 X 2,388,674 11/1945 Browne 61-70 2,652,221 9/1953 Kampa248-278 2,852,023 9/:1958 Hamilton et a1 128-203 3,292,618 12/ 1966Davis et al. 128-147 FOREIGN PATENTS 814,854 6/1959 Great Britain.

WILLIAM E. KAMM, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R.

